Guarding the Unknown: A Soldier’s Paranormal Experience

Not only no, but heck no.

I think black cats rock.

The only reason tarot cards readers exist is they can’t get a job dealing cards in Vegas.

I don’t believe in UFOs (or whatever they call them now).

And I don’t believe in ghosts!

I’m very much a man of science and I like to find the why behind any odd event.

I’m almost 69 now (I’m saying it so I can get used to the idea of saying it). In all my travels, there’s only one thing I’ve ran into that I still don’t have a logical explanation for. I’ve talked about it off an on in my blogs. I even have Jonesy telling the story in my latest novel, Event Horizon.

But here it goes again.

The Cease Fire was in effect following the Gulf War and we were camped right outside an abandoned Iraqi airbase. The place had a huge ammo dump that we’d blow up within a few days and we guarded it closely.

One night, my buddy G and I, decided we’d keep watch. All the other MPs were dog tired and since there’s other teams out, we’d give everyone a break. We took the Humvee out, checked our weapons, communications, NVGs, and sat watching, chatting and quietly passing the night. We were sitting in a good position to see the whole dump. We were maybe a dozen meters back from a road that bordered it. We had excellent fields of visibility and fire in all directions if needed. There was no moon, though we had a nice star filled sky. Couldn’t have asked for a more peaceful night.

Along about 01:30, we heard someone walking along the roadway. Thinking some local or a soldier hunting for souvenirs was about, we turned on our NVGs and started looking around. The NVGs made the pitch-dark Iraqi night as bright as day. I looked in the direction of the sound but couldn’t see anybody. The footsteps receded. My first thought was, “Crap, somebody slipped past us.” But then I heard the steps stop, turn, and start back in our direction.

I jumped behind the 60 and pointed it in the direction of the sound. G had his weapon ready, jumped down from the Humvee, and whispered, “Cover me!” He quickly ran to a position where he could surprise whoever it was walking along the road.

The steps got closer, walked past where G crouched, and then kept going for about 100 meters or so. They stopped, turned, and came back, once again passing our position. Problem was, there was no one making the sound of footsteps. They went down again about hundred meters, turned, and came back, and repeated exactly what they’d done before,

G ran back and looked up in bewilderment. “There’s no one there. They went right by me, and there was no one there.”

He relieved me from the 60, and I went out. I looked up the road in the direction the sound was coming from. If anyone had been walking along it, I’d have clearly seen them. The footsteps were walking away. They got about a hundred meters down, and again, they stopped, turned and walked towards me. They got closer, and then walked right past me. I’d made no effort to hide myself and stood in its path. I had my M-16 pointed at the sound of the steps. They got closer, were right in front of me, and then walked past.

Had someone actually been there, I wouldn’t have needed the rifle. I could have punched their lights out. But there was nothing there to shoot or punch. Whatever it was totally ignored me, and just kept on walking. I lowered the weapon and listened as they walked away. I felt pretty foolish standing in the Iraqi night with a loaded weapon, ready to shoot something that wasn’t there.

I slung my weapon over my shoulder and looked in the direction of the receding footsteps. “Fascinating,” I said to myself.

I walked back to the Hummer and got on top with G. We were both totally mystified.

“Well?”

“Whatever it is, isn’t interested in us,” I said. Somehow, that made me feel a little better.

We didn’t say anything for several minutes as the pattern continued to repeat itself over and over. We must have had the same idea at about the same time. We realized it sounded exactly like someone walking guard duty.

After about an hour, the footsteps stopped, and the rest of the night was spent peacefully. When the sun came up, we examined the area and the only footprints we found were ours.

When we were relieved and got back to the tents, Cpl. M (who’d run the team the night before our outing) asked if we’d heard anything odd.

I answered with my own question. “You mean like someone walking a guard post, only no one was there?”

“Exactly,” he said.

“Of course not,” we both answered.

Army engineers blew the munitions dump up a few days later. The explosion was spectacular. The same day, we left Iraq to return to Saudi Arabia and eventually home.

Over three decades have passed. I’ve done a lot of reading, a lot of questioning. and I don’t have a clue what was causing the sound of someone walking a guard post.

I’m sure there’s a logical, scientific explanation for this experience.

I just haven’t found it yet.